“Peur toujours, peur partout.”

Dense storm clouds cover the entire region of Canterlot and their surroundings. The wind speeds through the nearby mountains
and forests of the Capital City. Squirrels, owls, raccoons and all kind of small critters, hide inside their homes
because a storm is about to begin.

Just as the first thunders start to roll across the stormy sky, a lonely pony princess roams inside the empty halls of Canterlot’s palace.
Helped by the light of a candle, the princess makes her way through the thick darkness of the site.
Suddenly, another pony appears in front of her.

“…I see you’re leaving. Very well my dear sister, rest and as always, I’ll guard the night,” said Princess Luna to her sister,
Celestia, with a smile.

The white alicorn nodded and smiled back, right before continuing with her previous path. The Moon couldn’t be seen,
yet the slumber and tiredness invaded Celestia’s body, making her seek some sleep. After yawning a little, the eternal being
finally returned to her room. With the help of her magic, Celestia removed her golden crown, necklace and shoes.
The once enlightened candlestick now rests over a small night table.

“Good night everypony,” Celestia said to herself, just as she jumped into her bed. After a small moment, she drifted off to sleep.

Outside the castle, the storm continued covering the region with its powerful thunders and heavy rain.
After sleeping in peace for a few hours, the Solar Princess started to feel a cold draft inside her room.
Just as she removed her pink sleep mask, a mighty breeze blew her mane.

“Oh no,” sighed Celestia, just as she got out of her bed.

The room’s balcony doors were completely opened, allowing the rain and the wind to enter without pity.
Maps, books and even some drawings started to get wet. Before the white alicorn could even close them,
an unknown voice called her.

“Hello, Celestia…”

“WHO’S IN THERE?!”

“…”

“…CHRYSALIS, what are you doing here?!”

Thanks to the light of the storm, Celestia finally recognized her mysterious guest, Chrysalis, the Queen of the Changelings.
The evil monarch wasn’t wearing her crown, but instead, something that looked like a golden necklace of some kind.

“Now you’ll feel what it’s like to be hated, to be alone and to be repulsive for everypony...”

The white alicorn started to back away, frightened.

“Oh no, Celestia…”

“…if you think I'm a monster, just wait to see what you’ll turn into…” said Chrysalis for the last time,
right before touching her strange necklace. From it, a powerful spark of light came out and enlightened the whole room,
consuming both royalties on its way.

When the forceful light ceased, Celestia and Chrysalis appeared to be lying on the floor in the same exact spot where they were.
The white alicorn stood up with difficulty and trotted as fast as she could to the other side of her room. At the same time Chrysalis,
with difficulty too, opened her big eyes and tried to stand up again.

In the moment the Changeling Queen saw Celestia standing by the door, her ears dropped and her face turned sick.

“NO. IMPOSSIBLE!”

“W-WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME?!”

The Princess of the Day didn’t answer, but instead, smiled and furrowed her eyes.

It was then when they finally understood what happened. Celestia and Chrysalis had swapped bodies, somehow.
Now, with horror, the eternal being was looking at herself from the other side of the room through the eyes of her enemy.

Right before Celestia could even try to approach at her former self, royal guards of the palace appeared trotting at full speed.
After a brief moment, they were now inside the room, with swords.

“Seize her!” shouted Chrysalis while she backed away from the circle of guards, smiling.
The palace knights pointed their swords against Celestia in that moment, all of them at once.

“NO, W-WAIT…!” cried the new Changeling Queen, just as she tried to approach and reason with them.
The knights drew their swords. They all looked nervous, and quite scared, with her presence.
Celestia stopped and moved away from them, very slowly.

The circle of guards started to advance, forcing her to exit the room towards the wet balcony behind her.
The storm was still going on. Thunders and lightning filled the sky, as if they knew what was happening.

With the imminent advance of her own knights, the trapped Queen started to look down at the abyss beneath her.
With tears in her eyes, Celestia decided to jump in a desperate attempt to escape.

While falling, Celestia tried to use her new wings without any success. Right before she could crash in one of the castle’s gardens,
her wings finally responded and saved her. After landing in the miry soil of the courtyard, the now dirty and very scared
new Changeling Queen, initiated her escape through the palace, her old palace.

Not very far from where she landed, one of the many castle’s entrances lay. With lots of efforts, trying not to trip
over the wet stones of the place, Celestia trotted as fast as she could to it. Suddenly, its iron curtain fell, cutting her route of liberation.
With deep sorrow, the new Changeling Queen tried to lift the heavy gate.

“…this time you’ll not escape from me, CHANGELING MONSTER!” shout the Captain of the Royal Guard,
Shining Armor, with great rage. The white stallion was wielding his majestic sword in the air with his magic.

“Shining, please, let me explain you--”

“NO, I DON’T HAVE TO LISTEN TO YOU!”

Celestia remained quiet. Her eyes were full of tears.

“You can cry all what you want or even take any shape you wish, but this time I’m prepared to stop you…” said Shining for the last time,
just as he put down the visor of his helmet. His sword moved to a draw position. Ready for the battle, the Captain of the Royal Guard
started to advance against her.

Celestia started to panic in that moment. She was completely cornered, unprotected and scared.

“I-I… I don’t want to hurt you.”

“Please, forgive me,” cried Celestia, right before shooting a powerful flash of light with her horn.
Shining dropped his sword immediately. Without hesitating, the new Changeling Queen took this opportunity and fled while she could.

Moments later, some pegasi guards landed nearby their very angered captain,
who still was fighting to recover his sight back. Shining was heavily kicking.

“SEIZE HER. DO NOT LET HER ESCAPE!”

After a moment of total blindness, the Captain of the Royal Guard finally recovered his sight and picked his sword from the mud.

“Not this time…”

Inside the palace, Celestia was still trying to escape from her own guards. Since the whole castle was ringing with all kinds of alarms,
she started to feel exhausted because there was no place for her to hide or rest.

“I-I… I can’t continue. I’m too tired,” mumbled the new Changeling Queen, right before falling fatigued over a soft carpet.
While she tried to recover her breath, Celestia looked down at her new hooves and body for the very first time.

“What am I going to do…?”

Just when she was about to break into tears, a distant voice called her from the other side of the hall.

“PSST…!”

Celestia looked around, but she couldn’t see the pony who was calling her.

“Over here, your majesty!”

“…me?”

“YES. Over here!” shout a small changeling creature, while waving his leg.

Celestia stood up and trotted towards him. When she finally was in there, another changeling landed near them.
Both creatures were completely wet and full of mud in their hooves and tails, just like her.

“I’m so happy to see that you’re ok, your highness!”

“Bani and I found the wall that leads exactly to the forest…”

Celestia didn’t answer. She didn’t know what to say.

“That’s right, your majesty. Ponies will never find us in there!”

“OH NO, more guards are coming!”

“Quickly, this way!” shout the big creature, right before trotting away under the rain.
Bani followed him immediately. After hearing the guards coming too, Celestia decided to follow them.

Without wasting time, the group of fugitives dashed through the castle’s gardens. After turning in a corner, all of a sudden,
they found a lonely pegasi guard in front of them. The winged knight didn’t move. Very slowly, the white pony put down the lantern
he was holding over the wet tiles of the garden.

“You finally found her…”

“VERY WELL, let’s go.”

“You heard him, LET’S GO!”

After trotting for some minutes more, the group of fugitives finally arrived at the colossal section of the wall that they were looking for.
All of them stood staring at it, thinking of a way to cross it without being noticed by the palace’s guards.

“Look, we can use that terrace to help us jump over it…”

“Alright, follow me!”

After landing in the high spot, the group of changelings could perfectly see the entire forest thanks to the impact of the thunders.
Despite how creepy the scene looked like, Celestia, just like her new friends, felt more scared by the castle guards
rather than the dark stormy forest above her.

“Your majesty, you go first,” said the big changeling, right before pointing away with his hoof.
His noble gesture invited Celestia to jump and escape first.

“NOT SO FAST!” shouted Shining, just as he slammed the doors of the terrace without warning.
With him, fifteen additional guards came out and formed a half circle. All the knights pointed their swords at them in that moment.

“…make sure she makes her way back to Endcliff, Samsei,” said the big creature one last time,
right before putting himself in front of his friends. He didn’t seem to be scared, not even a little,
despite the number of knights around them.

“No, brother. WAIT!”

“I will take care of them, I promise.”

“NOW GO and good luck, your highness!” shout the big changeling just as he pushed Celestia,
the pegasi guard and his brother, down the wall with his powerful magic.

Perhaps it was the impression of seeing such scene or the sounds she was hearing in that moment,
but after falling in the forest, Celestia wasn’t trying to escape. She stood in there, petrified, hearing the battle.

Very slowly, the new Changeling Queen started to recover from her trance thanks to Bani. After feeling his gentle jostles,
the eternal being continued escaping with them, through the forest. After climbing a very steep and muddy hill,
the light of the thunders gave Celestia an idea of how far they were from Canterlot.

“Your majesty, over here…”

“SISTER, are you okay?!” asked Luna. She looked really worried.

Cadence and a unicorn guard were accompanying the new Celestia, who was drinking hot cocoa from a mug with her magic.
The new Solar Princess was wearing a blanket, but she was still shaking and sobbing a little.

“What happened?”

“Chrysalis entered into her room and threatened her,” replied the Princess of Love, while she slowly patted Celestia’s back.

“I was so scared…!”

“I should’ve been more careful, but I didn’t see anything strange…”

“Please, forgive me, sister,” said the Lunar Princess with deep regret. She now was looking down at the floor.

“Don’t worry. These changeling creatures are very astute and they could’ve fooled anypony…”

“But the important thing is did you… capture her?”

“No. She escaped through the forest with her friends…”

In that moment the white alicorn stood up and trotted towards Luna.
Her expression looked sad, frustrated and almost desperate as she continued with her bitter crying, again.

“I was sleeping so peacefully in my room when suddenly, that monster broke in and threatened me with all kinds of terrible things!”

“Sister, you must catch her at all cost before it’s too late…”

The Princess of the Night remained quiet. She looked uncomfortable.

“…I was sleeping under your shift, trusting you, remember?”

Luna in that moment returned to look down at the floor.
Cadence, after noticing her aunt’s regretful feelings, decided to come closer to them.

“What matters most is that you are okay. Don’t you think, Celestia?”

The white alicorn looked down immediately at her. She looked really angry for what her niece had said.
The Princess of Love remained quiet.

“No, she’s right. It was my responsibility…”

“Okay, I’ll catch her,” said Luna, right before exiting the room towards the wet balcony behind them.
The storm by that moment was completely finished.

“…and sister, bring her to me before sunrise, ok?” asked Chrysalis, but now her face looked really serious,
almost immutable, not sad like before.

“Yes, of course!

After taking off, the Princess of the Night dashed towards the forest.
Behind her, on the ground, a large row of soldiers followed her with swords.

A couple of hours had passed since Celestia escaped from Canterlot, helped by her new changeling friends.
The spirit of the lonely group was as low as the fog that covered the region where they now were.

The new Changeling Queen couldn’t stop thinking about what just happened. The sad words of Chrysalis still echoed inside her,
just like the frightening words of Shining. Celestia closed her eyes and sighed, with sadness.

“Don’t worry, your majesty. The river should be in front of us by any minute!” said the pegasi guard with a smile.
He was trying to cheer her up.

“Excuse me, but shouldn’t be you… trying to arrest us or something?”

“Why are you helping us?”

“Oh, your highness, that’s a good one!”

After hearing Samsei’s merry response, Celestia started to feel something beneath her. It was Bani, the small changeling creature,
who now was trotting between her long legs. He seemed to be scared by something because he was constantly looking behind them.

“What is it, little one?”

“…does the sun lives in the forest?”

“I… I don’t understand. What do you mean?”

“Yes, what do you mean with that?”

The small creature stopped and pointed at the forest.

“What’s… that, your highness?” asked Samsei, confused.

The new Changeling Queen didn’t answer. She looked really scared because in front of them, not very far between the tree trunks,
a light of some kind was coming right towards them at great speed. This light was so powerful, that it illuminated a whole area
of the wood without effort.

“…how far’s the river?”

“Probably like a quarter of mile, I think.”

“Let’s hurry then,” said Celestia, right before picking Bani up and trotting away with him.

The pegasi guard followed them immediately, because seconds later, the powerful light reached the spot where they were.
Landing with great power, Luna descended from the sky. It was her magic that was illuminating the whole area.

“QUEEN CHRYSALIS, I CAN SEE YOU!”

Behind her, a large horde of guards appeared trotting at full speed against them.
The Lunar Princess took off immediately and dashed over the tree tops.

“STOP, CRIMINAL!”

The beating of Luna’s wings was so strong that Celestia, and even her new friends, could perfectly hear her coming.
The new Changeling Queen started to feel exhausted again, but now from trying to escape from her own sister.

When Luna’s light started to be blocked by the leafy edges of the forest, Celestia stopped and hid behind a tree with Bani.
Samsei continued and hid too, a couple of yards away from them.

Celestia took this opportunity to recover her breath again. Bani jumped from her back and hid behind her front legs.
Moments later, in front of them, the horde of guards dashed through, but no pony saw them hiding in there.

When the clanking of the swords stopped, the sound of a river could finally be heard at the distance.
The new Changeling Queen noticed that from the other side of the road, Samsei was trying to tell her something with signs.
After finally understanding his message, Celestia smiled and looked down at Bani, who was still shaking with fear.

“Don’t worry. We are safe now.”

Bani stopped shaking in that moment.

“We better continue before they find us here.”

“Yes, your highness!”

Just when Celestia and Bani were about to exit their hideout, Luna landed in front of them.
Very quickly, the fugitives returned to their hiding spot, helped by the thick darkness of the place.
Luckily, the Lunar Princess didn’t see them.

“Listen, Chrysalis. I know you are out here, somewhere…”

“…and I know what you did, but I promise you no harm for you or your friends if you come with me now. I give you my word.”

Celestia noticed that Luna couldn’t see her in the shadows, so she started making some signs to Samsei of continuing with their plan.
After nodding, the pegasi guard trotted away from the Lunar Princess, trying to not make any noise.
The new Changeling Queen picked Bani, very gently, and put him again on her back like before.

“It’s already late and they’re waiting for me in Canterlot. Let’s finish this already, what do you say…?”

Celestia started to look around her, trying to find something that would help her distract Luna.
Underneath a large root, she picked a small stone with her magic and threw it away as far as she could.

“THERE YOU ARE!”

Without hesitating, the new Changeling Queen rushed to the river in the middle of the darkness with Bani.
Finally, in front of them, The Great Northern River of Canterlot lay.

“Here it is, just where we left it…”

Covered with some branches and small bushes, a large wooden raft was revealed to Celestia.
The heavy barge was built with five tied logs. In the back, a small rudder was built, but no mast or main sail could be seen.
The eternal being looked very impressed.

“I’m really sorry, your highness, but I’ll need your help to push it back to the water…”

"..."

“Alright, PUSH…!”

Behind them, suddenly, the sound of the guards coming again started to be heard more and more loudly.
They finally found them.

“Hurry, guards are coming!”

“ALRIGHT, one… more… push!”

With a last painful push, the raft finally fell in the water and started to float by itself. Celestia, Bani and Samsei jumped on board,
right before the royal knights could arrest them. All the guards remained still, looking at them getting away through the river.
From between them, Luna approached the shore.

In that moment, Bani and Samsei put themselves in front of Celestia. They were trying to protect her
in case the Princess of the Night, or some other guard, tried to shoot some spell at her.
When the raft was far enough from the shore, Luna took off and retreated back to the woods.
One by one, the knights returned too.

When nopony was seen anymore, Samsei and Bani stopped shielding Celestia. The pegasi guard moved to the back,
while Bani sat and started to play with the water around them. Celestia sat on the raft, very slowly, but her sight
couldn’t stop looking at the distant shore. The former Solar Princess started to understand a little more
what Chrysalis really meant with her words.

“Weird, I thought that pony princess was going to shoot us a spell from the shore…”

“Downstream we’ll safe, your highness,” said Samsei, right before bursting into green flames.
His true shape was revealed to Celestia in that moment.

“Oh, that’s why…!”

“But tell me, where are we going, exactly?”

“…well, I think we should return to Endcliff as soon as possible, your majesty.”

“Meanwhile, why don’t you get some sleep? I’ll be watching the entire journey until we get to Idohn Canyon.”

“Very well,” said the new Changeling Queen, right before lying down on the raft.
The movement of the water was so slow and gentle that Celestia, soon, drifted off to sleep.

Author's Notes:

DARK ROSE
By Roger334

Special thanks to:
Rekibob & TheBlueDreamMaker

Dedicated to:
Lauren Faust and Zygmunt Bauman